Doriel grinned. ‘Mine’s broken too, remember?’
‘Of course, I’m sorry about that.’ Beth grimaced.
‘Oh don’t worry. Just take care of Jonan. He has too much history with Amelia already. I hate to think of him getting drawn in again.’
Beth nodded, and then ran down the stairs.
On her own, it took moments to get back to the inn. She slipped through the gate, down the steps into Bill’s cell and then up into the corridor. She hoped Jonan was still there, or she would be walking into Amelia’s stronghold alone.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Jonan
Jonan forced himself not to move. It took all his focus not to walk out of the room with Beth, but then Amelia would have followed them both. As long as he was here keeping Amelia busy, Beth had a chance to explore without interference.
Amelia’s face softened as Beth left the room. ‘Let her look for the old man, Rolo.’ She sat in Bill’s old armchair by the fire, leaning her head against the back of the chair and gazing up at Jonan. In that moment, the celebrity was gone. He saw only the woman he had fallen in love with all those years ago.
He swallowed, stepping back to put some distance between them. He visualised white light streaming around him, connecting into his heart and forming a barrier between him and Amelia.
Amelia gave a throaty chuckle. ‘I’m not doing anything, Jonan, whatever you’re feeling is all you.’
Jonan gritted his teeth and forced his face into a strained smile. Amelia was watching him far too closely. He was used to playing the role of normal, but this was the toughest audience he could possibly face.
Roland held out a bottle of beer.
Jonan shook his head.
Roland rolled his eyes. ‘You’re far too serious, bro, always were. If you loosened up a bit, you might be able to get things moving with that girl of yours.’ He sat on the side of Amelia’s chair, draping one arm over her shoulders.
She turned to look up into his face and he dropped a kiss on her mouth that lasted a moment too long.
Jonan rolled his eyes. ‘I hate to interfere with your public displays of affection, but why the hell are you staying here? What happened to the London penthouse?
Amelia chuckled. ‘We’re not living here, as such, but I have a soft spot for this place. I want to keep an eye on how things progress.’
‘And this has nothing to do with Doriel and I living so close by?’
‘And what if it does? Would it be so terrible for me to want to move closer to my family?’
‘Family? You didn’t call me that when you were sleeping with me.’
Amelia laughed. ‘No, well, you and that mother of yours put paid to that and I moved on. Were you expecting me to hold a torch for you forever?’
‘I’m pretty sure you’ve never held a torch for me in your life.’ Jonan leaned against the wall. He had been over and over this part of his history in his mind. He thought he had come to terms with it but talking to Amelia brought up all the old anger.
‘That’s not true. I didn’t leave you, Jonan; I was ejected from the group. Don’t let Doriel persuade you into some kind of revisionist history.’
‘I know what happened.’ Jonan’s voice cracked.
Amelia blinked. She looked ashen in the dim light. ‘I know that’s not the way you see it, but believe me, it’s how I felt. You despise who I have become, but you and yours gave me very little choice.’
Jonan took a deep breath. The faint creases around his eyes deepened. ‘My mother put herself into spiritual seclusion when Roland and I were young enough to need her. Roland is right. Neither you nor I are innocent of that.’
Amelia’s face hardened. ‘Where is that bloody girl?’ She stood up, pulled on her discarded heels and strode from the room.
‘Wait,’ Jonan said, running to catch up. ‘You were going to let her look around.’
‘I figured she’d have a quick look, not root through my drawers. How long does it take to open doors and see a room is empty?’
‘To be fair, there are a lot of doors here,’ Jonan said, keeping pace with her now.
‘Quite the little knight in shining armour, aren’t you, Jonan,’ Roland said, just a step behind his brother. ‘Trying to live up to your tarot card, are you? Keeping everyone tightly controlled?’
Jonan glared at him but said nothing.
They spent a full twenty minutes trawling around the hotel’s many rooms before Amelia gave up and went back to Bill’s lounge. She waited for Jonan and Roland to follow her through the door, and then kicked it shut with a force that jarred Jonan to the bone.
‘Have you spoken to Miranda?’ she said, her voice hoarse. ‘How is she?’
‘She’s… different. There’s not much that would have persuaded her to leave her children, but you managed it. You excelled yourself, Amelia.’
Amelia swallowed. ‘I didn’t do it alone. You were as aware of the risks as I was.’
‘I was seventeen, Amelia. Just because I believed I understood the risks doesn’t mean I did. You were my mother’s best friend. You should have been looking out for me.’
‘Stop it, Jonan.’ Roland’s voice was sharp. ‘You walked away, not Amelia. You broke her heart and left me to clear up the mess.’
Jonan narrowed his eyes, watching their auras against the background of the starkly empty wall. Roland’s was a strong, shimmering green and pink, flecked through with red. He really did love Amelia. Hers was muddied, contracted smaller than he’d ever seen it. Jonan blinked. Could it be? Amelia was actually scared. What had her so worried? And how could he keep her talking long enough to give Beth a chance to find out?
‘When exactly did things begin between you two?’ Jonan poured himself a glass of whisky from the crystal decanter on the tray, and then leaned against the bureau. He nodded at Amelia. ‘Did you at least wait until my side of the bed was cold?’
Jonan grunted as Roland barged into him. He lurched to the ground, tipping whisky all over himself before dropping the glass onto the rug, where it rolled to a stop against the bureau.
Roland crouched over Jonan, raising his fist above his head.
‘Stop!’ Amelia shouted. ‘For heaven’s sake, you’re acting like jealous teenage boys.’
Roland turned, face flushing. ‘You’re going to let him speak to us like that?’
‘If I have a chance to win back Jonan’s good opinion, I’m not going to waste it.’
Roland was still for a moment, and then he jumped up, rolling his shoulders as he walked over to an upright chair on the opposite side of the room and sat down.
Jonan took a deep breath and got up. His glass lay unbroken in the corner. He retrieved it and poured another drink.
Roland shook his head. ‘Honestly, Jonan, it wasn’t like that.’
‘Well what was it like then?’
‘I always adored Amelia in a way you never did. But you wouldn’t understand that. It’s always about you, Jonan, it’s still about you and it drives me bloody crazy.’
Jonan looked at Amelia.
She flushed. ‘I would never hurt you, Jonan. Please believe that.’
Jonan stepped towards her, whisky in hand. His heavy boots made a satisfying thump on the threadbare carpet as he approached. ‘Every time you target Beth, you hurt me. You know that. It’s why you sought her out to work on your little project, and you’ve been badgering her ever since.’